Inside eerie airplane graveyard as collection of private military planes including Seahawk are left to rot
RUSTING aircraft lie covered in moss and fading paintwork at an eerie plane graveyard.
These are the carcasses of fighter jets that once ruled the skies in some of Britain’s fiercest aerial battles.
Among the grounded squadron is a Gloster Meteor, the first and only Allied fighter jet to see action in WWII.
They blasted Hermann Göring’s German Luftwaffe out the sky above Southern England during the Battle of Britain in relentless airborne tussles with the rival Messerschmitt Me 262.
The Cotswold plane graveyard, in Birlingham, near Pershore, Worcs., also features a De Havilland Vampire.
This was the second jet fighter to be used by the RAF and had a top speed exceeding 500mph.
It was developed during WWII and is immediately identifiable through its twin boom configuration.
A Hawker Hunter – which boasts a Rolls Royce engine – is another of the planes slowly being reclaimed by nature.
The British-made aircraft is considered one of the most successful jets ever produced by Hawker and was exported to 21 other countries.
Nearly 2,000 were produced from 1951 and the 730mph jet saw active service in the Aden and Malayan Emergency.
Incredibly, the Hawker Hunter was still in active service with the Lebanese Air Force, until 2014, according to BAE Systems.
The other dormant craft slowly being reclaimed by nature include a Hunting Jet Provost training aircraft and a Hawker Seahawk.
Margaret Flo McEwan, 58, who had permission to capture the private collection, said she’d like to see the planes restored to their former glory.
The military history nut, from Berkshire, said: “The planes have been here for many years.
“Aviation enthusiasts would love to see them restored to their former glory, but their owner has chosen to leave them untouched.
“They seem destined to be reclaimed by nature.”